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Cuba to Stop Accepting American Coins
Cuban banks and stores that do business in U.S. dollars will stop accepting American coins this fall, the Central Bank said Tuesday.
In a short note in the Communist Party daily newspaper, Granma, the bank announced that beginning Oct. 15, only Cuban-made "convertible pesos" will be accepted for denominations smaller than a dollar. American paper currency will remain valid, but quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies will no longer circulate.
"It is international practice to not accept foreign coins, owing to the high cost associated with its use and exportation," the announcement said. An earlier version of the "convertible peso" coins, minted by the Tourism Institute, will also no longer be accepted.
The use of American dollars by Cubans was decriminalized in August 1993 as part of a series of modest reforms aimed to help citizens weather a severe economic crisis caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union a decade ago.
Dollar transactions on the island have increased significantly in recent years, but many goods and services for Cuban citizens are provided for ordinary Cuban pesos whose current official exchange rate is 22 to the dollar, including public transportation, utilities and subsidized food.
The Central Bank did not say how much U.S. currency circulates on the island, which has been under a U.S. trade embargo since 1961. It said Cuba has "sufficient quantities of Convertible Cuban Peso coins to substitute the circulation of the United States coins." The convertible pesos have the same denominations as U.S. currency.
It is estimated that at least 60% of Cuba's 11 million citizens have some access to U.S. dollars ¡ª from relatives abroad, as tips for tourism workers or through salaries in some sectors that now pay workers partially in American currency.
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